So you want to know how to be successful in sales and want to know how to become a better salesperson? Sales success begins with attitude, it’s directly connected to understanding that the sale is not about you; It’s not about commission, It’s not about moving an item of off the shelves, and it’s not about the hefty paycheck. It’s not about you – it’s about the customer. Sales Pitch is the Key: Nowadays, an effective sales pitch is a two-way street — a conversation where you listen to the buyer, ask real questions, and offer them a solution to a challenge they’re experiencing. A good sales pitch starts with a great first impression. Sales professionals work hard to make a memorable and positive initial impact by creating laser-focused one-liners, but it’s just as important that your short, snappy delivery also resonates long after you’ve delivered that opening line. You want a presentation that holds your audience’s attention — the longer you’re able to keep that attention, the higher your chances of winning them over. And captivating your audience involves being prepared with relevant buyer information, and a pitch that actively includes the buyer in the discussion. At its most basic level, the sales pipeline represents your company’s sales process and how your company tracks progress through each stage of the process. Knowing that, here are a few tips to get you on your way to a more effective sales pitch: Do the Due Diligence Give Them the Answers To Your Homework You’re Listening, But Are You Hearing Your Buyer? A Call for “Call to Actions” If you are engaging your customer over the phone, to achieve sales success, be upfront about the reason for your call, vouch for the integrity of the product or service you are selling, and draw comparisons between your prospect and satisfied customers. When leaving voicemails, emails or follow-up messages, it’s important to reiterate the reason for contacting them, as well as summarizing your intent. Finish up the message with an suggested action either on your part or theirs. Pipeline #Management: Pipeline management includes everything from the way the sales pipeline is designed to how it is measured and how it is used to drive sales-rep performance. Without a clearly defined sales process, the pipeline has no foundation. We found that sales forces were most effective at managing their pipelines if they invested time in defining a credible, formalized sales process. In fact, there was an 18 percent difference in revenue growth between companies that defined a formal sales process and those that didn’t. Track the Source: For optimal sales effectiveness, you need to provide employees with a tool that captures information about each and every interaction with your prospects and customers. This includes integrating your different channels, such as your website. People most often hear about your company and products and services through ads, referrals, online banner ads or some other form of advertising. You need to keep track of what actually caused these suspects to raise their hands so you can better determine what works and what doesn’t. Curated from 3 Best Practices of Sales Forces Are you a Problem-Solver; then you have a streak of sales person in you: Great salespeople also tend to be into solving problems and driving for results. They’re positive in their attitude, powerful and authoritative. The traits that make them so great at sales also can lead to traits that present difficulties for managers. They can be impulsive, demanding and unrealistic in their expectations. They may lack attention to detail and are often disorganized. In order to motivate and lead salespeople effectively, you want to think about what’s important to them and...

Here is a brief and concise article on how to go about post job interview follow-up. So tell me, should candidates send a follow up note after an interview? Yes, always. Whether or not a candidate is truly in the running, the interviewer can get crazy busy and it’s important to always follow up with a note and even a call in a week if there’s no word back on next steps. Candidates should never be afraid to ask for acknowledgement and closure, even if it’s not the news they want to hear. It is a great way to not only let someone know that you appreciated their time and insights – but also to make sure they are aware of your interest and enthusiasm, and reinforce how you “fit”. From a recruiting perspective, what’s the purpose of sending a follow-up? The follow-up is a way to reiterate interest and reaffirm why the candidate is the best fit for the role. It’s never too late, although at that point the hiring manager may have already made her decision. But front-running candidates do decline offers and take other positions, so there’s always a possibility of being considered. A note will probably not be able to turn around an interview that did not go well, but it could be something that could help differentiate you from equally strong candidates. From a recruiting perspective, the recruiter will appreciate someone showing their understanding of and connection with the company, the role, and/or the people they met. That could make a big difference. Show that you can be graceful: Follow up with post-interview thank-you letters to each person you talked with on your job interview. The first step in your follow-up is a polite handwritten note card to each interviewer. You won’t be able to fit many words on each notecard, and you don’t need to. Your handwritten thank you note is very important, because the biggest problem you face after your job interviews is that the interviewers forget who you are. They will literally forget you unless you bring yourself back to mind by mentioning something specific that you and each interviewer talked about. An interviewee says: You guys have no idea how effective this method is! In my last interview, I left knowing that I bombed it because I wasn’t receiving any positive feedback from my interviewer. I was pretty bummed out by it but nevertheless, I sent him a thank you letter via email just to thank him for his time. I didn’t expect a response but little did I know, a few days later I got a nice reply from him and a week after that, I got called in for a second interview! Just goes to show how far a little effort can take...

Best New #Business Ideas for 2015 – Accountant Create a flier outlining your services. Before you do that, you need to know what those services will be. Do you want to simply do bookkeeping for a small business? A more involved level of #accounting would be do actually work up balance sheets, income statements, and other financial reports on a monthly, quarterly, and/or annual basis, depending on the needs of the business. Other specializations can include tax accounting, a huge area of potential work. Many business owners don’t mind keeping their own day-to-day bookkeeping records but would rather get professional help with their taxes. Most small businesses don’t have a full-time accountant, so the task of record keeping often falls to the business owner. A highly organized, trustworthy, part-time bookkeeper can really alleviate the stress of sorting through receipts and tax returns. You’ll most likely only need to put in one or two days a month for each client, depending on how many sales and expenses they have. Knowledge of QuickBooks is a plus, but not necessarily a requirement for, this side business. And if you don’t already have a relevant degree, you can take bookkeeping classes at a local community college. You can also become a certified bookkeeper through organizations like the National Association of Certified Professional Bookkeepers. Curated from Need a Business Idea? Here are 55 It’s the year of the entrepreneur. Thanks, in part, to social media, crowdfunding and alternative lending options, and the constant evolution of technology, it’s a great time to start a business. Attractive #Business Ideas for Accountants Some of the most important business ideas for accountants are given as under. Bookkeeping: Bookkeeping is a lucrative business alternative for accountants. Both and small business firms require to maintain updated bookkeeping. With the availability of various software and computers equipped with the latest technology, bookkeeping has become easier than before. Accountants can engage themselves educational bookkeeping, this kind of business venture require both experience and education which the accountants usually have. Payroll Service: Payroll service which is a subsidiary of bookkeeping service is a very good business idea for accountants. #Payroll services are necessary for most of the companies, and accountants can engage themselves into this kind of service which will help them earn good profits. #Tax preparation: Tax preparation service can prove to be a very fruitful business idea for the accountants, for this kind of business grows very easily and appeals to numerous clients. Accountants taking tax preparation service as a business plan means that both individuals and firms will act as...